Success Stories
The Eyes Have It
She is referred to as a visionary and for more than one reason. This imaginative and determined New Orleanian is not only providing a critical service to area public schools, but what she is doing is literally bringing into focus an entire world that some kids are having a hard time seeing.
She is Lynn Hobbs and her organization is The Eyes Have It, a nonprofit agency that offers vision screenings, eye examinations and free or discounted eyeglasses to students at public schools in the New Orleans area.
Her story begins in 2002 and nearly ended after Hobbs lost everything Hurricane Katrina. My house, my office, all my supplies were destroyed. There was absolutely nothing left, Hobbs explains. And her personal tragedy didnt end there. Three months after Hurricane Katrina, her son was killed in a car accident. Six months later, her mother died. It was because of my son I started The Eyes Have It. Years ago he asked me to help a student at his school and little did I know then what we would accomplish with a little determination and a lot of help along the way.
It is in the memory of her son and with the partnership of School Health Connection (SHC) that Hobbs not only has her vision program back up and running, but has actually expanded services to include those who are still displaced by Hurricane Katrina. Nearly two years after the storm, some 250,000 area residents are still living in temporary housing elsewhere, some in other Louisiana parishes. Included in those numbers are students that Hobbs has helped and continues to reach out to for follow-up services. We have children who lost glasses in Hurricane Katrina and have no means of replacing them. How can we expect these children to succeed when they cant see the chalkboard or read a book?
With the help of SCH, schools throughout the state can now apply for financial assistance to secure funds needed to participate in The Eyes Have It program. All we charge is five dollars per student per year to participate in the program, Hobbs explains, but quickly adds, Sadly though some schools dont have those resources so SHC has stepped up and provided the necessary funding.
Hobbs, who worked out of her car for months following Hurricane Katrina, says the rewards of this program far outweigh all the roadblocks they have had to overcome. Recently she was off to a school to deliver to a 16-year-old girl two pair of the most stylish glasses around. This student, who had vision of minus 700, was barely making the grades to stay in school. As Hobbs explains, No one realized that why she wasnt able to keep up was that she couldnt see. Now she has two pair of glasses and an organization that will make sure she gets the follow-up care she needs.
